The Online Marketplace features great merchandise and services from local, trusted businesses who are customers of our newspaper. Using auction-style bidding, you can place bids on items available from these local vendors and, if you are the highest bidder, pay for and receive a certificate to pick up the item directly from the vendor.

General Rules

By participating in Auction Block, you acknowledge that you have read, understand and accept these rules. The Omaha World Herald (hereinafter referred to as "the newspaper") reserves the right to update and change these rules from time to time.

The newspaper provides the auction-style online marketplace as a venue for sellers to advertise and promote items for you to bid on. The newspaper is not involved in any transaction entered into through the online marketplace except to the extent that the newspaper may collect the total purchase price for items other than real estate or automobiles, as outlined herein. The newspaper is not involved in the buying, selling, exchanging or dealing of items in the online marketplace, nor is the newspaper soliciting orders on behalf of the sellers. The newspaper charges no fee to vendors for listing items in the online marketplace, nor to buyers who purchase items from vendors who participate in the online marketplace.

The goods and services offered through the online marketplace are provided by the participating businesses on an "as is" basis. The newspaper makes no representations or warranties and there are no conditions of any kind, express or implied, statutory or otherwise, with respect to the goods and services offered through the online marketplace, including without limitation:

implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, title and non-infringement;

any implied warranty arising from course of dealing or usage of trade;

any obligation, liability, right, claim or remedy in tort, whether or not arising from the negligence of CityXpress or the newspaper.

All items in the online marketplace are brand new, unless otherwise indicated, and come with applicable warranties, as determined by the seller. The newspaper is not the vendor of the items and assumes no responsibility for the items in any respect. The respective sellers of each item are solely responsible for descriptions in the online marketplace and the condition, estimates, authenticity, title, representations as to price, and all other matters relating to the offer and sale of the items.

All items in the online marketplace may be viewed at the respective seller's place of business as indicated in the auction catalog. Bidders are urged to view items on which they intend to bid prior to bidding.

The online marketplace is open to any person who has reached the age of majority in their home province or state. Employees of CityXpress not eligible to participate. Employees of participating businesses may bid, but not on items that are provided by their respective businesses.

You are prohibited from using any method, mechanism, device or software to affect the proper functioning of the online marketplace and website. The newspaper may, at its sole discretion and without notice, terminate the right of any participant in the online marketplace or user of the website to participate in the online marketplace or use the website.

All content on this website is the property of the newspaper or the sellers. The newspaper grants a limited license to each user of the website to make personal use only of the website itself. Any other use, including reproduction, modification, distribution, transmission, or display of the content on the website is strictly prohibited.

The online marketplace is governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the state or province and country in which the newspaper resides. You agree to comply with all applicable laws, statutes and regulations regarding participation in the online marketplace and use of the website.

Bidding Rules

Starting and ending time is determined by the website clock. Bids will be accepted during this time period only. If a bid is placed within the last 3 minutes of an itemís closing time, the bidding for the item will automatically extend for an additional 3 minutes from the time of the bid. The newspaper reserves the right, at its sole discretion and without notice, to extend, terminate or modify the online marketplace in the event of unforeseen technical difficulties that alter the proper functioning of the online marketplace.

Bids may be placed online 24 hours per day at the online marketplace website, between the online marketplace start date and time and the online marketplace end date and time, or during limited hours by phoning to the Auction Bid Line, if the newspaper offers this service.

The Bidder Trust Committee will set a Starting Bid for each item. The Starting Bid is the minimum amount required to participate in the bidding for that item.

Each item has a Reserve Value. The Reserve Values are usually 50% of the ordinary selling price of the item, except in the case of items such as automobiles or real estate, where the Reserve Value may be higher.

Each item has a Reserve Status, which indicates one of two values:

Reserve not met. The amount of the highest Maximum Secret Bid is less than the Reserve Value and the item will not sell.

Reserve met. The amount of the highest Maximum Secret Bid is at least as much as the Reserve Value and the item will be sold to the highest bidder.

The online marketplace operates under a proxy bidding system. Under proxy bidding, you tell the Bidder Trust Committee the maximum amount you are willing to bid for an item. This is your Maximum Secret Bid and is known only by you and the Bidder Trust Committee. You should be sure of your Maximum Secret Bid prior to submission. The Maximum Secret Bid that you submit may not necessarily be the price you pay if you are the successful bidder - you may pay less, but never more. However, choose your maximum carefully, as you will be legally bound to pay up to that price (plus any applicable taxes) if it is the final highest bid.

If your Maximum Secret Bid is the first bid on an item, it must be at least as much as the Starting Bid for the item. If previous bids have been placed on all available quantities of the item, then your Maximum Secret Bid must exceed the current leading bid on that item by at least the minimum increment for that item (where the increment is $1 for items whose value is less than $100, $10 for items whose value is $100 or more, but less than $10,000, and $100 for items whose value is $10,000 or more). For example, if the current leading bid is $250 on a $1000 item with an available quantity of one, then your Maximum Secret Bid must be at least $260.

Based on your Maximum Secret Bid, the Bidder Trust Committee will place bids on your behalf at the lowest amount possible to make you the high bidder for the item. For example, if yours is the first bid on an item, the Bidder Trust Committee will place a bid on your behalf equal to the Starting Bid for that item, or if your Maximum Secret Bid is greater than the Reserve Price of the item, the Bidder Trust Committee will place a bid equal to the Reserve Price (and declare Reserve Met).

If another bidder places a Maximum Secret bid on an item for which you have placed a bid, and your Maximum Secret Bid on that item is higher than the other bidder's Maximum Secret Bid, the Bidder Trust Committee will automatically place a bid on your behalf that is $10 more than the current leading bid, to ensure you remain the leading bidder. For automobiles, real estate or any item with a value of $10,000 or more, that increment will be $100. For items with a value of less than $100, the increment will be $1. The Bidder Trust Committee will continue bidding in this fashion until one of three things happens:

No other bids are higher than yours,

Your Maximum Secret Bid is reached, or

You are declared the highest bidder at the end of the online marketplace.

It is your responsibility to monitor the outcome and status of your bids on the online marketplace website and, in the event that you are outbid by another bidder with a higher Maximum Secret Bid, determine whether to continue bidding on an item. If you are outbid by another bidder with a higher Maximum Secret Bid, you must submit a new Maximum Secret Bid in order to continue your bidding on that item. If you submit a new Maximum Secret Bid, that bid supersedes all your previous bids on that item. The amount of the new bid must be at least $10 more than the current leading bid on the item (or $100 for items over $10,000 in value and $1 for items under $100 in value), and the quantity must be the same as or greater than the highest quantity in any of your previous Maximum Secret Bids on that item.

If your Maximum Secret Bid is exactly the same as another bidder's previously-placed Maximum Secret Bid on the same item, the bidder whose bid was placed first shall be declared the leading bidder.

If an item is available with a quantity greater than one, you may place a bid on more than one of that item (your Bid Quantity). For example, for an item that is available with a quantity of three, you may bid on one, two or all three of that item. The quantity allocated to you by your bid may be as much as your Bid Quantity or may be less (but never more), depending on whether there are previous bids by other bidders at the same amount, or subsequent bids at higher amounts, and the Bid Quantity of each. The quantity allocated to you may also change over the course of the online marketplace as subsequent bids are received, if those bids are higher than yours.

In the event of a dispute between bidders or between bidders and the Bidder Trust Committee, or in the event of doubt or dispute as to the validity of any bid, the Bidder Trust Committee will have the discretion to determine the successful bidder. All decisions by the Bidder Trust Committee are final and binding.

The newspaper is not responsible for any bids that are lost, misdirected, incomplete or illegible, or for failed, partial or garbled computer transmissions, or for technical failures of any kind including, but not limited to, malfunctioning of any network, hardware or software, which may limit a bidder's ability to participate in the online marketplace. Proof of sending will not be proof of receipt by the newspaper. The newspaper is not responsible for any online, long distance telephone, or other charges you may incur in connection with participating in the online marketplace.

During and after the marketplace event, you may receive emails confirming bids you place, notifying you that you have been outbid by another bidder, or notifying you that you are a winner. These emails are for informational purposes only. Their transmission or omission do not constitute any change in the status of your bid or those of other bidders. Only the record of bids in the online marketplace system, as represented on the online marketplace website, constitutes the true bid record, as used by the Bidder Trust Committee to determine the winning bidder at the close of the online marketplace.

Payment Rules

At the close of the online marketplace, the Bidder Trust Committee will determine the winning bidder (the buyer) for each item and will contact that bidder by email and/or phone within five days to notify him/her of his/her winning status and request payment. As the buyer, you may not retract your bid and are obligated to make full payment of the total purchase price within three days of notification being initiated by the Bidder Trust Committee. If a buyer cannot be contacted, or if payment is not received in full, within three days of contact first being initiated, the Bidder Trust Committee reserves the right to disqualify that buyer and deem the next highest bidder on the item to be the buyer. As the new buyer, you may not retract your bid and are obligated to make full payment of the total purchase price within two days of notification being initiated by the Bidder Trust Committee. If a buyer cannot be contacted, or if payment is not received in full, within two days of contact first being initiated, the Bidder Trust Committee reserves the right to continue the process of disqualification and notification of subsequent bidders, or to remove the item from sale.

The total purchase price of an item for each winning bidder is defined as the leading bid for the item at the close of the online marketplace, for each winning bidder, multiplied by the quantity allocated to the bidder. In the event that a bidder is disqualified and the item offered to the next highest bidder, the total purchase price shall be the next highest bidder's Maximum Secret Bid, multiplied by the quantity allocated to the bidder, plus any applicable transaction taxes required by law to be collected and remitted.

For most items, the buyer shall pay the total purchase price to the newspaper, who is collecting it on behalf of the seller (the participating business which sponsored the item in the online marketplace). In some instances, such as for automotive and real estate items, the buyer shall pay the total purchase price directly to the seller. Specific payment instructions for each item won are provided in winning bidder email notices.

It is the seller's and the buyer's responsibility to obtain any applicable or necessary licenses, registrations, or any other form of approval for the items sold and to pay any fees associated therewith.

Once full payment of the total purchase price has been made on the item, the buyer will receive an Item Certificate to be presented to the seller to release the item to the buyer. Unless specified in the item description, the certificate expires 6 months from the date of issue. All delivery or pick-up arrangements must be made with the respective seller. Delivery may incur additional charges above and beyond the total purchase price, to be negotiated separately between the buyer and seller. All sales are final.

If the buyer fails to comply with these rules, including the obligation to make full payment of the total purchase price within the time limits and terms set out herein, in addition to other remedies available to the newspaper and the seller, you not only will remain obligated for your leading bid amount, you also will be responsible for an additional 20% of the leading bid amount, and you will be obligated to pay all attorney's fees and costs incurred to enforce payment of these amounts. The newspaper or the seller may also cancel the sale and re-offer the item or sell it privately and hold the buyer liable for any costs or losses associated therewith.

It is the seller's and the buyer's responsibility to ensure that all taxes that apply to the items or transactions are collected, reported and remitted to the appropriate tax authority. During collection of the winning bid payment, or upon receipt of the Winning Bidder Certificate, the vendor of the item will separately bill or invoice the sales/use tax due on the sale, upon shipment of the item, for delivery to those states the vendor is registered to collect such tax; and for those states the vendor is not registered to collect such sales/use tax (and as a result does not separately bill or invoice the buyer for such tax), it is the buyer's responsibility to remit the amount of sales/use tax due directly to the appropriate taxing jurisdiction.

As stated in these rules, all sales are final. However, in the event that an item you won and paid for was not fairly represented on the marketplace website, a refund will be considered. To be eligible for a refund, you must not redeem your certificate for the item, and must submit your request within forty-eight (48) hours of completing payment and receiving your certificate. Please see the Contact Us page for contact information to which you must submit your request. We'll notify you via e-mail of the status of your refund once we've received, reviewed and processed your request. You can expect a refund in the same form of payment as originally used to make payment, within 7 to 14 business days of our receiving and approving your request. If you have already redeemed your certificate for the item, you should contact the vendor directly regarding a refund.